duncan228
01-15-2009, 01:48 AM
Karma Jr. - Mason would also come in handy in June (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Karma_Jr_-_Mason_would_also_come_in_handy_in_June.html)
Buck Harvey
Roger Mason Jr. didn’t merely make the shot.
It was how he did it.
Mason somehow caught a desperation fastball from Matt Bonner, and then backed up slightly. He knew he could set himself with a bump against the out-of-position defender behind him. Then, at worst, he would draw the foul.
And it was whom he did it against.
When it comes to last-second shots going the other way, when it comes to whistles going the other way, wasn’t it Derek Fisher’s turn?
Fisher preferred not to talk about the last play. He said he hadn’t seen the replay, and everyone wished he had. Then he might have said something better than, “It is what it is.”
The lack of a replay didn’t stop Phil Jackson from framing this his way. “I don’t know if (Mason) created the collision,” Jackson said, “or if Fish did.”
Oh, Mason created it, and he admitted it afterward. Fisher would have done the same given the chance. It was clever, and the moment revealed yet another layer of the Mason profile.
The Spurs will need all of it if they are to beat these Lakers in a playoff series. The Lakers played the night before in Houston, and they were without three rotation players. Fisher, too, played with a slight groin injury.
Given that, the Spurs still needed not only Mason’s shot, but also a half-dozen others that Manu Ginobili called “crazy.” And Ginobili knows crazy.
So the Lakers’ power is undeniable, as their seven losses to this date suggest, and this goes back to the last time these teams played. Then, about the time the Spurs were losing their legs after spending a night on their charter jet, Andrew Bynum was losing part of his left one.
That was the schedule of the Western Conference finals. Surgery for %Bynum, Game 1 for everyone else.
And when the Spurs lost their 20-point lead that day and went on to lose the series in five games, the Lakers felt doubly happy. Just how good would they be when their 7-foot wunderkind came back?
He hasn’t always been great this season, and Tuesday night against Yao Ming was an example. But there are nights when the Lakers will look like the Spurs of 10 years ago.
Then, David Robinson and Tim Duncan could be out of sync. It takes time to mesh% 7-footers who can take up similar space, and Pau Gasol and Bynum have been together for just half a season.
Bynum is also just 21, and he’s making strides. Before he came to Texas on this trip he put together games of 18, 20 and 24 points.
The 18 he scored against the Spurs fits into that. He defended Duncan in the middle of the fourth quarter when the Lakers went on a 9-0 run, and the size problems he creates will always be an issue for the Spurs. There were times Wednesday when the Lakers had a significant height advantage at every position except for point guard.2
And when Kobe Bryant is what Gregg Popovich says he is? “The best player on the planet?”
Then Bryant is throwing in a 3-pointer with 12.6 seconds remaining, just as he did in Houston the night before. He’s paired with height and depth, and the Lakers are the clear favorites.
Still, as long as the Spurs have Duncan, they are big enough. He almost put together a triple-double Wednesday, and his two tough drives in the final 90 seconds gave the Spurs a lead.
But what gives the Spurs a chance against Bryant and his 7-footers is the same mentality that has won championships. They rotate on defense, and they play together, and they make shots.
Added to the mix now is Mason. Everyone knew the guy was intelligent, and that — as in Phoenix on Christmas — he is capable of big shots.
Popovich certainly knows all of this now. “He has the license to (shoot the last shot),” Popovich said. “We all trust him.”
And then Popovich said something that sure sounded like a reference to Fisher’s% .4 shot in 2004 and the non-call last year: “We’re fortunate that what goes around comes around.”
So Mason not only looks like the kind of player who understands space and situation, he also brings some karma with him. Couldn’t that translate in June, too?
Buck Harvey
Roger Mason Jr. didn’t merely make the shot.
It was how he did it.
Mason somehow caught a desperation fastball from Matt Bonner, and then backed up slightly. He knew he could set himself with a bump against the out-of-position defender behind him. Then, at worst, he would draw the foul.
And it was whom he did it against.
When it comes to last-second shots going the other way, when it comes to whistles going the other way, wasn’t it Derek Fisher’s turn?
Fisher preferred not to talk about the last play. He said he hadn’t seen the replay, and everyone wished he had. Then he might have said something better than, “It is what it is.”
The lack of a replay didn’t stop Phil Jackson from framing this his way. “I don’t know if (Mason) created the collision,” Jackson said, “or if Fish did.”
Oh, Mason created it, and he admitted it afterward. Fisher would have done the same given the chance. It was clever, and the moment revealed yet another layer of the Mason profile.
The Spurs will need all of it if they are to beat these Lakers in a playoff series. The Lakers played the night before in Houston, and they were without three rotation players. Fisher, too, played with a slight groin injury.
Given that, the Spurs still needed not only Mason’s shot, but also a half-dozen others that Manu Ginobili called “crazy.” And Ginobili knows crazy.
So the Lakers’ power is undeniable, as their seven losses to this date suggest, and this goes back to the last time these teams played. Then, about the time the Spurs were losing their legs after spending a night on their charter jet, Andrew Bynum was losing part of his left one.
That was the schedule of the Western Conference finals. Surgery for %Bynum, Game 1 for everyone else.
And when the Spurs lost their 20-point lead that day and went on to lose the series in five games, the Lakers felt doubly happy. Just how good would they be when their 7-foot wunderkind came back?
He hasn’t always been great this season, and Tuesday night against Yao Ming was an example. But there are nights when the Lakers will look like the Spurs of 10 years ago.
Then, David Robinson and Tim Duncan could be out of sync. It takes time to mesh% 7-footers who can take up similar space, and Pau Gasol and Bynum have been together for just half a season.
Bynum is also just 21, and he’s making strides. Before he came to Texas on this trip he put together games of 18, 20 and 24 points.
The 18 he scored against the Spurs fits into that. He defended Duncan in the middle of the fourth quarter when the Lakers went on a 9-0 run, and the size problems he creates will always be an issue for the Spurs. There were times Wednesday when the Lakers had a significant height advantage at every position except for point guard.2
And when Kobe Bryant is what Gregg Popovich says he is? “The best player on the planet?”
Then Bryant is throwing in a 3-pointer with 12.6 seconds remaining, just as he did in Houston the night before. He’s paired with height and depth, and the Lakers are the clear favorites.
Still, as long as the Spurs have Duncan, they are big enough. He almost put together a triple-double Wednesday, and his two tough drives in the final 90 seconds gave the Spurs a lead.
But what gives the Spurs a chance against Bryant and his 7-footers is the same mentality that has won championships. They rotate on defense, and they play together, and they make shots.
Added to the mix now is Mason. Everyone knew the guy was intelligent, and that — as in Phoenix on Christmas — he is capable of big shots.
Popovich certainly knows all of this now. “He has the license to (shoot the last shot),” Popovich said. “We all trust him.”
And then Popovich said something that sure sounded like a reference to Fisher’s% .4 shot in 2004 and the non-call last year: “We’re fortunate that what goes around comes around.”
So Mason not only looks like the kind of player who understands space and situation, he also brings some karma with him. Couldn’t that translate in June, too?